"Body Building for Men and Women: How to Achieve your Goals"
What You WANT to Know About Body Building so You too Can Win Contests
And Turn Heads!
What The New "Low-Carb" Study REALLY Says
By Tom Venuto, NSCA-CPT, CSCS
Get your Free Fat Loss Report www.BurnTheFat.com
A news media feeding frenzy erupted recently when a new diet study
broke in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM). Almost all the
reporters got it wrong, wrong WRONG! So did most of the gloating low
carb forumites and bloggers. Come to think of it, almost everyone
interpreted this study wrong. Some valuable insights came out of this
study, but almost everyone missed them because they were too busy
believing what the news said or defending their own cherished belief
systems …
The new study, titled, “Weight Loss With a Low-Carbohydrate,
Mediterranean, or Low-Fat Diet” was published in The New England
Journal of Medicine (NEJM) in issue 359, number 3.
I quickly read the full text of the research paper the day it was
published. Then, I shook my head in dismay as I scanned the news
headlines.
I found it amusing that the media turned this into a three ring circus,
putting a misleading “low carb versus high carb,” “Atkins vindicated”
or “Diet wars” spin on the story. But that’s mainstream journalism for
you, right? Gotta sell those papers!
Just look at some of these headlines:
“Study Tips Scales in Atkins Diets Favor: Low Carb Regimen Better Than
Low Fat Diet For Weight And Cholesterol, Major Study Shows. “
“Low-Carb and Low-Fat Diets Face Off “
“The Never-Ending Diet Wars”
“Low Carb Beats Low Fat in Diet Duel.”
“Atkins Diet is Safe and Far More Effective Than a Low-Fat One, Study Says”
“Unrestricted Low-Carb Diet Wins Hands Down”
Some of these headlines are hilarious! I wonder if any of these
reporters actually read the whole study. Geez. Is it too much trouble
to read 13 pages before you write a story that will be read by millions
of already confused people suffering the pain and frustration of obesity?
Here’s a quick look at the study design.
The low fat restricted calorie diet was based on American Heart
Association guidelines. Calorie intake was set at 1500 for women, 1800
a day for men with 30% of calories from fat, and only 10% from
saturated fat. Participants were instructed to eat low fat grains,
vegetables, fruits and legumes and to limit their consumption of
additional fats, sweets and high fat snacks.
The Mediterranean diet group was placed on a moderate fat, restricted
calorie program rich in vegetables and low in red meat, with poultry
and fish replacing beef and lamb. Energy intake was restricted to 1500
calories per day for women and 1800 calories per day for men with a
goal of no more than 35% of calorie from fat. Added fat came mostly
from nuts and olive oil.
The low carb diet was a non-restricted calorie plan aimed at providing
20 grams of carbs per day for the 2 month induction phase with a
gradual increase to 120 grams per day to maintain the weight loss.
Intakes of total calories, protein and fat were not limited. However,
the participants were counseled to choose vegetarian sources of protein
(more on that bizarre-twist shortly).
The study subjects were mostly male (86%), overweight (BMI 31) and middle age (mean age 52)
Here were the study results:
There were some health improvements in cholesterol, blood pressure and
other parameters in the Mediterranean and low carb group that bested
the high carb group. That was the focus of many articles and
discussions that appeared on the net this week. However, I’d like to
focus on the weight loss aspect as I’m not a medical doctor and fat
loss is the primary subject matter of this website.
All three groups lost weight. The low carb group lost 5.5 kilos, the
Mediterranean group lost 4.6 kilos and the low fat group lost 3.3
kilograms…. IN TWO YEARS! Whoopee!
My conclusion would be that the results were similar and that none of the diets worked very well over the long term!
Amanda Gardner of the US News and World Report Health Day was one of the few reporters who got it right:
“Diet plans produce similar results: Study finds Mediterranean and low-carb diets work just as well as low fat ones.”
Tara Parker-Pope of the New York Times also came close with her headline:
“Long term diet study suggests success is hard to come by: In a tightly
controlled experiment, obese people lost an average of just 6 to 10
pounds over two years.”
Even this headline wasn’t 100% accurate. The study was HARDLY tightly
controlled. Tightly controlled means metabolic ward studies where the
researchers actually count and control the calorie intake.
The problem is, you can’t lock people in a hospital or research center
ward for two years. So in this study, they used a food frequency
questionnaire. Sure, like we believe what people report about their
eating habits at restaurants and at home behind closed doors!
BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
“No! I swear Dr. Schwarzfuchs! I swear I didn’t eat those donuts over the weekend! I stayed on my Mediterranean diet. Honest!”
One of the most firmly established facts in dietetics research is that
almost everyone underreports their food intake BADLY, sometimes by as
much as 50%. I’m not saying everyone “lies,” they just forget or don’t
know. In fact, this underreporting of calorie intake is such a huge
problem that it makes obesity research very difficult to do and
conclusions difficult to draw from free-living studies.
Another blunder in the news reports is that this study didn’t really
follow Atkins diet parameters OR even the traditional low fat diet for
that matter, so it’s not an “Atkin’s versus Ornish” showdown at all.
If you actually take the time to read the full text of the research
paper it doesn’t say ANYTHING like, “Atkins is the best after all.”
That’s the spin that some of the news media cooked up (and what the
Atkins foundation was hoping for).
It says, “The diet was based on the Atkins diet.” However, the sentence
right before that says, “The participants were counseled to choose
vegetarian sources of fat and protein.” Vegetarian Atkins?
The chart on page 236 says the low carb diet provided 40% of calories
from carbs at 6, 12 and 24 months. If I’m reading that data properly,
then the only low carb period was a brief induction phase in the very
beginning.
The Atkins Foundation, which partially supported this study, told
reporters, “We feel vindicated.” HA! They should have paid the
reporters and told the researchers they felt ripped off and they wanted
a refund for misuse of their research grant!
After carefully reading the full text of this study, there are many
interesting findings we could talk about, from the differences in
results between men and women to the improvements in health markers.
Here’s what the study really says that stood out to me. It’s what I
would have talked about if the newspapers or TV stations had called me:
1. “Mediterranean and low carb diets may be effective alternatives to low-fat diets.”
I can agree completely with that statement. All three diets created a
calorie deficit. All three groups lost weight. Low carb lost a little
more, which is the usual finding because low carb diets often control
appetite and calorie intake automatically (you eat less even if you
don’t count calories). Also, if body composition is not indicated,
there’s an initial water weight loss that makes low carb diets look
more effective in the very early stages.
2. “Personal preferences and metabolic considerations might inform individualized tailoring of dietary interventions.”
Absolutely! Nutrition should be individualized based on goals, health
status, body type, activity level and numerous other factors. Different
people have different phenotypes. Some people are more predisposed to
thrive on a low carb approach. Others feel like crap on low carbs and
do better with more carbs or a middle of the road approach. Those who
dogmatically follow and defend one type of diet or the other are only
handcuffing themselves by limiting their options. Iris Shai, a
researcher in the study said, “We can’t rely on one diet fits all.”
Hmm, far cry from “Atkins wins hands down,” wouldn’t you say?
3. “The rate of adherence to a study diet was 95.4% at 1 year and 84.6% at 2 years.”
THIS was the part of most interest to me. When I read this, immediately
I could have cared less about the silly low carb versus high carb wars
that the news reporters were jumping on.
I wanted to know WHY the subjects were able to stick with it so well.
Of course, that’s boring stuff to journalists… adherence? What does
that word mean anyway? Yawn - not interesting enough for prime time, I
guess.
But it was interesting to me, and I hope YOU pay attention to what I found. The authors of the study wrote:
“This trial suggests a model that might be applied more broadly in the
workplace. Using the employer as a health coach could be an effective
way to improve health. The model of group intervention with the use of
dietary group sessions, spousal support, food labels, and monthly
weighing in the workplace within the framework of a health promotion
campaign might yield weight reduction and long term health benefits.”
Hmmmmm, lets see:
* Dietician coaching
* Group meetings
* Motivational phone calls
* Spousal support
* Workplace monitoring (corporate health program)
* Food labels - calorie monitoring
* Weigh-ins (required and monitored)
Wow, everything helpful to long term fat loss that sticks. Can you say,
ACCOUNTABILITY? These factors help explain the better adherence.
By the way, the adherence rate for the low carb group was the lowest.
90.4% in low fat group
85.3% in the Mediterranean group
78% in the low carb group
Here’s the bottom line, the way I see it:
First, please, please, please learn how to find and read primary
research and take the news media stories with a grain of salt. If you
want to know who died, what burned down or what hurricane is coming,
tune in to the news – they do a GREAT job at that. If you want to know
how to lose weight or improve your health, look up the original
research papers instead of taking second hand information at face
value.
Second, those who prefer a low carb approach; more power to them. Most
studies, this one included, show at the very least that low carb is an
option and it’s not necessarily an unhealthy one if done intelligently.
I also have no qualms with someone claiming that low carb diets are
slightly more effective for weight loss, especially in the short term,
free living situations. Is low carb superior for fat loss in the long
haul? That’s STILL highly debatable. It’s probably superior for some
people, but not for others.
Third, low carb people, listen up! Even if low carb is superior, that
doesn’t mean calories don’t count. Deny this at your own peril. In
fact, this study shows the reverse. The low carb group was in a larger
negative energy balance than the high carb and Mediterranean group
(according to the data published in this paper), which easily explains
the greater weight loss. Posting the calories contained in foods in the
cafeteria may have improved the results and helped with compliance in
all groups.
When energy intake is matched calorie for calorie, the advantage of a
low carb diet shrinks or disappears. For most people, low carb is a
hunger management or calorie control weight loss advantage, not
metabolic magic (sorry, no magic folks!)
Fourth, choose the nutrition program that’s most appropriate for your
personal preferences, your current health condition, your genetics (or
phenotype) and most important of all… the one you can stick with. Then
tend your own garden instead of wasting time criticizing how the other
guy is eating. Your results will speak for themselves in the end. Take
your shirt off and show us.
If I were forced to choose only one approach (and thank god I’m not), I
would recommend avoiding the extremes of very low carb or very low fat
or very high fat or very high carbs. Balance makes the most sense to
me, and the research suggests that this helps produce the highest
compliance rate. That’s not rocket science either, it’s common sense.
If you have a serious fat loss goal, as when I compete in bodybuilding,
then a further reduction in carbs and increase in protein makes perfect
sense to me as a peaking diet.
If an extremely low or extremely high carb diet worked for you, great.
But generalizing your experience to the entire rest of the world makes
no sense. Arguing from extremes is the weakest form of argument.
The reason I have THREE nutrition plans (three phases) in my own fat
loss program is because programs with flexibility and room for
individualization beat the others hands down in the long term. In fact,
I wrote an entire chapter in my e-book about unique body types, how to
determine yours and how to individualize your nutrition – it’s THAT
important.
If you have more choices, you have more power. The people who are
shackled by dogma and narrow thinking are stuck. They also risk missing
what’s really important. Things like:
Personalization
Adherence
Long-term Maintenance
Accountability
Social Support
PS. If you want to learn more about a balanced, flexible and
proven approach, which teaches nutritional individuality and which can
produce similar weight loss in one month, month after month, that the
subjects of this study produced in TWO YEARS, (if you ADHERE to it!),
then visit my fat loss website.
Tom Venuto is a natural bodybuilder, certified personal trainer and
freelance fitness writer. Tom is the author of "Burn the Fat, Feed The
Muscle,” which teaches you how to get lean without drugs or supplements
using secrets of the world's best bodybuilders and fitness models.
Learn how to get rid of stubborn fat and increase your metabolism by
visiting: www.BurnTheFat.com
Discover a Groundbreaking Fat-Loss Program For MEN and WOMEN That Can Actually
ADD Muscle To Your Body
Even in Experienced Trainers,
While Burning Off Pounds of Fat!
Exclusive Offer On The Powerful
"Metabolic Surge - Rapid Fat Loss" Program
AND a powerful letter from an actual user
of the "Metabolic Surge" program
(this will give you goose-bumps!)
A Special Message From: Joseph Sgro
Keep reading to find your FREE courses and about the special,
limited-time offer on the "Metabolic Surge - Rapid Fat Loss"
program. I also want to share a great letter with you
that Nick Nilsson, the author of the "Metabolic Surge" program
has shared with me.
He recently received it from a user of the program. He has
given me permission to reprint it in it's entirety. Read
through it. It's an amazing example of how effective and
life-changing this program can be.
Hi Nick,
I purchased the Metabolic Surge eBook about eight weeks ago and
just finished up the strength and recovery phase. Let me say
that I can't wait until next week so I can start all over. I
cannot believe the results that I got. I really didn't have an
accurate way of measuring my bodyfat when I started, so I got a
pair of Accu-Measure calipers about three weeks into the program.
At that time I weighed 255 at 26% bodyfat and my clothing were
already starting to get loose. Now I weigh 253 with 23% bodyfat.
Thats a 3% loss in only 4 weeks. Unbelievable! I took before and
after pictures like you recommended and what a difference,
especially the picture from behind.
Also, when you said that I wouldn't lose muscle and might even
add some, I thought you were a little off your rocker. WAS I WRONG.
Not only did I not lose any, I really slapped it on. Here is an
example of one of my strength gains. Prior to starting I could
flat bench 205 for 5 reps. My last strength and recovery workout
I did 235 for 6 reps. Absolutely every muscle group saw gains.
Now straight from the heart, let me thank you very, very much
for putting together this program and offering it at such a
reasonable price. For the last six years, I have been trying to
find a way to shed weight and have had one failure after another
only to wind up being heavier. You have helped me overcome the
biggest obstacle on this journey, my work schedule. Working 12 hour
days is no picnic. Working out after a 12 hour day would have been
insane, training the way that I always trained. I always lifted
for 45 minutes and then did 30 minutes of cardio 5 or 6 day a week.
My diet was never what it should have been either.
Now I can go after work, hit it hard and get home and it's only an
extra hour. You also helped me out with some adjustments to the
program to accomodate my schedule. I once asked a trainer at my
gym how I could maximize my training on this schedule and he
told me I should change jobs. He doesn't work there anymore.
I was thinking a few months ago if I look okay next summer I
would be happy. Now I want to see if I can get a six pack for
Xmas, and I am not talking beer.
By the way, my wife, who is still battling the extra weight from
our daughter, who is three, is 2/3 of the way through the Level
One program. She has seen more results in the two weeks she has
been on your program than she did in the two months she spent
working with a personal trainer. Don't get me wrong, she did
get results, but not this good. She's planning on doing the
full program next. She was so excited when she pulled out the
boxes of her old clothing this past weekend and started fitting
into all of the smaller sizes.
Anyway Nick, thanks a million. You are a fine person and should
take pride in this program. I have been checking out fitstep.com
for my future fitness needs. Right now I am just going to stick
with Metabolic Surge until I fulfill what I only thought was
a dream.
When I read that letter, all I could say was "wow." And the best
thing is, YOU can get results like that too...
Back to the special, limited-time offer:
Nick is very proud to announce the inclusion of professionally-
designed, high-performance meal plans, very specifically
designed to work with and maximize the results you get from the
"Metabolic Surge" program. These have been put together by one
of the most respected and sought-after Sports Nutritionists in
the world, Dr. John Berardi, PhD, CSCS.
In a nutshell, these meal plans will help you lose fat faster,
build muscle more effectively, and help you get complete
nutrition while doing so. You'll know EXACTLY what to eat on
every single phase of the diet. There will be NO guesswork
involved in any phase of the program.
Dr. Berardi works with some of the most talented, high-profile
athletes on the planet and it's a testament to the effectiveness
of the program that he's agreed to contribute these meal plans.
I'm the type of person who benefits most when all aspects of
a training program are completely laid out for me. I don't
want to have to think about every detail while I'm trying to
do something - I just want to do it. You may very well be
like that too!
With the addition of these detailed meals plans, "Metabolic
Surge" is simply THE most complete and effective fat loss
program on the market.
Every day, every rep, every set, every training technique,
every cardio session, and now every meal, is all laid out for
you.
Put ALL your effort into the program, not
on figuring out how to do it (of course, if you're the type who
likes to be "free-er" in your training and eating, it's easy
to work that into the program, too).
To further help, Nick has also updated the book with a
comprehensive "Frequently Asked Questions" section that covers
a wide range of topics. These questions are from actual users
of the program. Chances are, this new section will answer all
your questions about the program before you even think of them!
Here's the special, limited-time offer...
Because of the new meals plans and the other additions to the
book, the price of the "Metabolic Surge" program will soon be
going up to $29.95 from it's current $24.95.
Before you click the link below to learn more about the program,
I want you to go back up and re-read the letter above and
Think
About How You Would Feel
"Dropping Stubborn Fat"
that had been
with you for years when nothing else worked,
how exciting it
would be to be able to wear clothes you hadn't been able to fit
into in a LONG time, how literally AMAZED everybody around you
will be as the fat practically falls off your body while you
add muscle and strength.
This is not just a dream. People are doing it every day with
this program. You can too.
P.S. Remember, this is a limited-time offer so be sure to place
your order right away before the price goes up. You'll get the
full updated version, with the professionally-designed meal plans
and new FAQ section (in addition to the complete training, nutrition
and supplementation programs already in the book) at the current
lower price. With this book, you will NEVER have trouble peeling
off JUST the fat again.
Stop Dieting and Lose Weight - Click below to start a great fat burning program.
Subscribe here for Your FREE Courses and Body Building Tips For Women:
Name:
Email Address:
"Body Building for Women"
Are you worried about your "glutes"?
Well listen to this:
"I Increased My Butt Size 2 Inches in 2
Weeks Using This Program! THANK YOU SO MUCH! I finally have hope for my
flat buns. They have never responded to weight training, no matter how
much weight I used, but this actually worked!" S. McMillan
Find out how you can do it too. Click here to find out more.
Testimonial
This book is by far your best to date...although the other books
I've read were awesome, this one tops them. There are a lot of great
butt busting exercises here. In my days of training as a natural
bodybuilder I have had some experience with a few of these exercises
previously, but there were some I did not. I chose to do the ones I had
never done before and I am currently going to try your advanced
specialization program.
Once again, I have never felt my glutes like
this before. I actually wish this book was in print. This is one I
would like to carry with me. If you ever decide to put this ebook in a
printed version PLEASE let me know. I would be first in line. If you
already have such a version let me know.
The amount of information, exercises,
programs, etc. for the glutes is awesome. Glutes and legs are a
troublesome area for me (and all woman I know) . This book can benefit
ANYONE looking to develop their Glutes to the Max!
Would you like to add 50 pounds or more to your
bench press in the next 3 weeks? With properly targeted Specialization
Training, your body is capable of tremendous progress. Strength
increases of 25% or more in a matter of days can be accomplished.
Click here to find out more.
